A strong warm front associated with a low pressure system from the Gulf of Mexico caused a protracted precipitation event to occur in New Jersey. This was complicated by a very cold air mass that was in place over the state at the start. Snow overspread the state between 3 p.m. (south) EST and 6 p.m. (far north) EST on the 15th. The warm air had an easier time advancing aloft than near the ground as an unseasonably cold air mass was still in place. The snow changed to freezing rain about an hour after precipitation started in the south and about two hours after precipitation started in the north.  Snowfall accumulations were less than one inch. The shore and Delaware Bay facing counties changed over to plain rain quickly. It took a bit longer for the strong southeast flow from the still relatively warm Atlantic Ocean to change the freezing rain to rain farther inland. In the southwestern part of the state the change to plain rain occurred between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. EST.  But farther north in northern Hunterdon and Somerset Counties as well as in all of northwest New Jersey, the change to plain rain did not occur until as late as 3 a.m. EST on the 16th. Before the change to plain rain occurred, around one quarter of an inch of ice accrued on exposed surfaces. Travel on untreated roadways were treacherous. The worst reported accidents were in Mercer County where multi-vehicle accidents occurred on New Jersey State Route 29 just before it becomes Interstate 195 in Hamilton Township. Five accidents involving eighteen vehicles occurred in both directions of the roadway. One man was seriously injured when he fell backwards over a New Jersey State Route 29 guardrail and tumbled forty feet. Even the Philadelphia Flyers were not immune from the effects of the ice as two separate multi-car crashes on the Walt Whitman Bridge closed the span for one hour. Two-thirds of the team was stuck in the traffic tie-up and the start of the game was delayed.The precipitation was caused by a low pressure system that developed on the Gulf Coast early on the 15th. A broad southerly brought moisture and much milder air into the region. The low itself moved northeast through the Delaware valley overnight on the 5th and was located near New York City at sunrise on the 16th. The track helped bring relatively warm air from the nearby Atlantic Ocean into the region and helped change the freezing rain to plain rain.

Winter Storm in WARREN, NEW JERSEY
From 15-DEC-05 22:30:00 to 16-DEC-05 01:30:00 (EST)
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Weather in CAMDEN, NEW JERSEY
From 15-DEC-05 15:00:00 to 15-DEC-05 18:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Storm in HUNTERDON, NEW JERSEY
From 15-DEC-05 22:00:00 to 15-DEC-05 23:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Storm in MORRIS, NEW JERSEY
From 15-DEC-05 23:00:00 to 16-DEC-05 00:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Storm in SOMERSET, NEW JERSEY
From 15-DEC-05 22:00:00 to 15-DEC-05 23:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Storm in SUSSEX, NEW JERSEY
From 16-DEC-05 00:00:00 to 16-DEC-05 03:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Weather in GLOUCESTER, NEW JERSEY
From 15-DEC-05 15:00:00 to 15-DEC-05 18:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Weather in MERCER, NEW JERSEY
From 15-DEC-05 16:00:00 to 15-DEC-05 19:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Weather in MIDDLESEX, NEW JERSEY
From 15-DEC-05 16:00:00 to 15-DEC-05 20:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Weather in NORTHWESTERN BURLINGTON, NEW JERSEY
From 15-DEC-05 15:00:00 to 15-DEC-05 18:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Weather in SALEM, NEW JERSEY
From 15-DEC-05 14:30:00 to 15-DEC-05 18:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Weather in WESTERN MONMOUTH, NEW JERSEY
From 15-DEC-05 16:00:00 to 15-DEC-05 18:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC